event

Civil Society Under Assault

Fri. May 19th, 2017
Washington, DC

Actions by governments around the world to restrict space for civil society have continued to multiply. Drawing on her new report, Civil Society Under Assault: Repression and Responses in Russia, Egypt, and Ethiopia, Saskia Brechenmacher examined three key aspects of this phenomenon: 1) the variety of tactics used by governments to weaken civil society; 2) the manifold effects of such campaigns on local civil society actors; and 3) the struggle for effective international responses.

Mariam Afrasiabi and Douglas Rutzen provided comments, and Thomas Carothers moderated.

Saskia Brechenmacher

Saskia Brechenmacher is an associate fellow in Carnegie’s Democracy and Rule of Law Program.

Mariam Afrasiabi

Mariam Afrasiabi is senior civil society adviser at the United States Agency for International Development.

Douglas Rutzen

Douglas Rutzen is president and CEO of the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law.

Thomas Carothers

Thomas Carothers is vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Democracy
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
event speakers

Saskia Brechenmacher

Senior Fellow, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program

Saskia Brechenmacher is a PhD candidate and Gates Cambridge scholar at the University of Cambridge and a senior fellow in Carnegie’s Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program, where her research focuses on gender, civil society, and democratic governance.

Mariam Afrasiabi

Mariam Afrasiabi is senior civil society advisor at the United States Agency for International Development.

Douglas Rutzen

Douglas Rutzen is president and CEO of the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law.

Thomas Carothers

Harvey V. Fineberg Chair for Democracy Studies; Director, Democracy, Conflict and Governance Program

Thomas Carothers, director of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program, is a leading expert on comparative democratization and international support for democracy.